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Things are looking up in the office, aesthetically speaking. This morning, our director, who has a background in interior design, arrived and gave our office a sort of makeover. Immediately after, we found ourselves moving furniture, tables and cabinets. Several art works were hung on the wall which brightened our surroundings instantly.We also did some cleaning and decluttering to complement the mini renovation going on. After a few hours, our office looked a loooot better.

a glimpse of our office

The size of the work place affects productivity in a good way, and so is its look. I, for one, get more motivated completing my tasks for the day when my surroundings look nice. But it’s not to say that I can’t work in a not so neat environment, because I can. I can even work just as good in a noisy place. So long as I’m not hungry or depressed, I can finish my tasks.

The Elements of Style is an American English writing style guide written by William Strunk, Jr. and E. B. White. I remember having read the book back in college during the time when I was struggling to improve my grammar and writing skills. I can say that the book had helped me a lot. It’s golden rule, ‘Omit needless words,’ remains with me and I always try to do just that whenever I write.

Over time, people tend to learn new things and forget old ones. I’m one of those who forget things after a while. I was in the middle of a writing task when I suddenly remembered the book and thought of revisiting its pages and reviewing its grammar and writing rules again. I immediately searched for an e-book copy online and I was glad to have found one in no time. It was in 4th Edition and authored by Oliver Strunk.Continue reading “The Elements of Style, E-Book”

I didn’t plan to check out the mall-wide sale at SM Manila but for some unknown reason, I did go yesterday and made some purchases at the Department Store. I was with the boyfriend who, actually, was the one who did the shopping first. He went to the mall Friday night and bought two new pairs of expensive shoes. I got a bit envious of him and so, I also bought two new pairs of shoes. The only difference was that, my shoes were way cheaper than his (P350 and P440, respectively). I’m frugal, you know.

SM Manila’s 3-Day Sale started Friday (September 3) and will be ending today, Sunday (September 5). For this particular sale period, mall hours are from 10:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m. When we went yesterday, the mall was jam-packed with people. The mere sight of the crowd could make anyone dizzy. But if you’re like me who enjoys shopping a lot, it won’t be much of a problem. Instead of looking around and minding other people’s business, I concentrated on scrutinizing the items I was interested in for defects.Continue reading “SM Manila’s 3-Day Sale and My Haul”

Finally. September 10, 2010 is a holiday! President Benigno S. Aquino III, through Proclamation No. 26, has just declared September 10 as a non-working holiday to be one with our Muslim brothers in celebrating the end of ‘Ramadan,’ the holy month of fasting. Formally, the festivity is called ‘Eid ul-Fitr.’

If I’m not mistaken, September 10 is the first and only holiday this month. Not bad. At least we still get some every now and then. Unlike the previous President, the current one isn’t too fond of holidays. Or so I think.

Where do you pay your bills? The boyfriend has this habit of paying his bills online (thru credit card) which I find smart. I, on the other hand, am old-school. I pay my bills at the nearest SM Bills Payment Center. I find it very convenient as I can pay my various bills in one place and with lesser hand work. You see, I’d just give the billing statement to the staff behind the counter and I’m done in no time. I know there are times the line gets unbelievably long but eventually you’ll learn proper timing.

As much as possible, I don’t entertain the idea of paying my bills online because a) all of my credit cards are 80% maxed-out already, b) using money from my bank accounts (which I can access online) to pay for my bills defeats the very purpose of saving up and c) I’m just too lazy to open the PC and do bills payment.

My three siblings and I spent the long weekend with my parents in our Cavite home. It was one of the best weekends I’ve ever had. On Saturday evening, we chatted the night away while lying in bed. We took a trip down memory lane. Our room got filled with laughter and loud voices. Before we knew it, it was already 4:00 a.m. But I digress. What I really want to share are the health benefits of lemon grass or tanglad.

Photo from mdidea.com

Aside from the distinct flavor it gives to Asian dishes, tanglad has many health benefits that only a few people know or cared to know. I only read about them online, and so when my mom complained of hip and back pains last weekend (which seemed to be a case of UTI to me), I did not hesitate to advise her to drink some fresh lemon grass tea. The next morning, the pains stopped.